Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Geometry And Density Of B-Emission Star Disks From Statistical Analysis And Numerical Simulations, Isabelle H. Cyr

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis is divided into 3 investigations. First we present a novel method to estimate the opening angles of Be star disks from interferometric axis ratio measurements, using Bayesian statistics and Monte Carlo techniques. A large set of theoretical axis ratios generated from disk models were compared to observational samples to determine which distribution best reproduces the observations. We find that the observed axis ratio distributions in the K-, H-, and N-band can best be explained by the presence of thin disks while measurements over the H$\alpha$ line point toward slightly thicker disks. Second, using a smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) …

The Hα Spectroscopy Of Classical B-Emission Stars, Jessie M. Silaj

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Classical B-emission (Be) stars are rapidly-rotating, massive stars that possess a dense, equatorial, gaseous disk. The presence of a disk was first inferred from the Balmer series emission that these stars exhibit, and Hα emission lines remain both a hallmark observational feature and one of the key diagnostics in determining the physical conditions within the disk.

In the first chapter of this thesis, we investigate the possible role of line-driven winds in disk formation. To test if line-driven winds could supply enough material to account for the equatorial disk, we check for the presence of Hα emission in the models …

Observational Signatures From Self-Gravitating Protostellar Disks, Alexander L. Desouza

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Protostellar disks are the ubiquitous corollary outcome of the angular momentum conserving, gravitational collapse of molecular cloud cores into stars. Disks are an essential component of the star formation process, mediating the accretion of material onto the protostar, and for redistributing excess angular momentum during the collapse. We present a model to explain the observed correlation between mass accretion rates and stellar mass that has been inferred from observations of intermediate to upper mass T Tauri stars. We explain this correlation within the framework of gravitationally driven torques parameterized in terms of Toomre’s Q criterion. Our models reproduce both the …